Innocent Madonko in HANGZHOU, China
CHINESE molecular diagnostics firm Hangzhou Ustar Biotechnology Company is keen to expand its operations in Zimbabwe, where it established a presence in 2019 and has continued to grow its footprint.
Founded in 2005, the company has supplied 94 pieces of molecular diagnostic equipment to 67 hospitals in Zimbabwe through the Ministry of Health and Child Care.
Its point-of-care molecular diagnostic technology is used to detect infectious diseases such as tuberculosis (TB), HIV and human papillomavirus (HPV), as well as respiratory infections, including influenza, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and Covid-19. It can also detect tropical diseases such as dengue, Zika and mpox, as well as gastrointestinal infections.
Ustar entered the Zimbabwean market during the Covid-19 pandemic, when its diagnostic solutions helped support the country’s testing efforts.
The company’s testing kits were also used in large-scale prospective Covid-19 vaccine effectiveness studies across six provinces, evaluating the protection offered by inactivated vaccines during the period of Omicron variant dominance.
Addressing a delegation of senior Zimbabwean health professionals attending a two-week seminar on public health management at the company’s headquarters here yesterday, Ustar chief executive officer Mr Yizhi Lin said the company was encouraged by its reception in Zimbabwe and had established strong working relationships with local partners.
He said strategic supply-chain partnerships with entities such as Satewave Technologies had enabled the company to distribute diagnostic products targeting Zimbabwe’s major public health priorities.
Mr Lin said the company’s Cross-Priming Isothermal Amplification technology had helped identify active TB and multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB) cases in remote communities.
“We are honoured to welcome a delegation of Zimbabwean health care managers and specialists at our premises and hope they will learn more about our company and appreciate its operations.
“Zimbabwe is among the countries in Africa where we have a big presence and we would want to expand our operations over there. It is therefore a pleasure to welcome you all,” he said.
The company has a team of medical hardware engineers in Zimbabwe who are certified to maintain Ustar systems, assist with medical laboratory installations and service diagnostic equipment distributed across southern Africa.
Chief Director of Public Health in the Ministry of Health and Child Care Dr Celestino Dhege said infectious diseases remained a major public health concern in Zimbabwe, making reliable diagnostic technology essential in combating them.
“We are glad for the opportunity to come to source and appreciate how you operate. Infectious diseases are an issue for us and we hope the close cooperation we have with you will continue.
“Your method of TB testing is particularly suited to children,” he said.
Ustar Biotechnologies has developed rapid nucleic acid amplification platforms, including EasyNAT and PortNAT, designed to deliver results without requiring a conventional polymerase chain reaction (PCR) laboratory set-up. The technology is suited to settings with limited laboratory infrastructure.
Earlier in the day, the Zimbabwean delegation toured Zhejiang Medicines and Health Products Import and Export Company, a pharmaceutical wholesaler with customers in more than 100 countries across Europe, Asia, the Americas and Africa.
The delegation comprises provincial medical directors, district medical officers, epidemiologists, infant mortality and maternity specialists, laboratory technicians and hospital administrators from the country’s 10 provinces.
Zhejiang Medicines and Health Products Import and Export Company, a subsidiary of Zhejiang International Business Group, evolved from a State-owned enterprise in 1999 and has been listed among China’s top 500 exporters for 13 consecutive years.
Source: Chinese diagnostic firm keen to expand local operations – herald
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